Sell With Authority – Details, episodes & analysis

I’m thrilled about welcoming today’s guest expert to join us on this episode of Sell With Authority, Katy Doss. Katy is the Founder and CEO of Script Marketing and Here Molly Girl.

She owns and leads not one — but TWO agencies!

Let me set the stage for why we thought this conversation would be so valuable.

Katy took a bold, creative leap when steering her agency into a niche. Instead of gradually repositioning her agency over a couple of years — she and her team dove headfirst into the deep end by creating an entirely new agency focused on their target niche.

Katy shares her remarkable journey of transforming her generalist agency, Here Molly Girl, into the niche powerhouse that is Script Marketing.

Running two agencies at the same time creates some unique challenges. We talk with Katy about how she prioritizes the moving pieces — and keeps all of this running smoothly while balancing the demands of two agencies.

Katy and her team show up like true partners — moving away from tactical, “vendor-like” conversations — to leading with outcomes.

I’m saying “us” because Hannah Roth is also joining this episode. She’s our Director of Strategy and resident Mad Scientist here at Predictive. Hannah works directly with clients every single day, helping them drive results — and sell more of what they do.

• The first step to getting intentional about biz dev
• Why asking strategic questions and actively listening is key to building meaningful right-fit client relationships
• The value of strategic partnerships over vendor relationships
• Why niching down is essential for long-term agency success and sustainability
• How Katy successfully narrowed her agency’s focus
• Emphasizing value-based pricing and selling outcomes — rather than deliverables

Resources:

• Website: https://scriptmarketingco.com/
• Facebook Personal: https://www.facebook.com/katyharperdoss.art/
• Facebook Business: https://www.facebook.com/scriptmarketingco/
• LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katyharperdoss/
• LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/script-marketing-co/
• Twitter Personal: https://x.com/katyharperdoss
• Twitter Business: https://x.com/ScriptMktgCo
• Instagram Business: https://www.instagram.com/scriptmarketingco/
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/scriptmarketingco/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ScriptMarketingCo
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/62cdForlAnnBsOAUXccsKE
• Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-affluent-buyer-script/id1758125214

I’m excited to welcome our guest expert to this episode of Sell With Authority, Sara Hanlon. Sara is the President and Co-Founder of Peer Sales Agency, a B2B marketing agency that’s all about driving sales.

If you’re meeting Sara for the first time, let me tell you — she’s not only super smart when it comes to B2B sales strategy, but she’s also created resources — like the B2B Sales Leader Guide — that can really help agencies level up.

With her deep expertise in sales-oriented B2B marketing, Sara shares helpful strategies on how to shift sales conversations towards a more research-oriented approach. It’s about truly understanding your clients’ pain points and goals — at every stage of the buyer’s journey.

Sara breaks down the essential approach of creating problem-focused content at the top of the funnel, introducing solutions in the middle, and building trust at the bottom with testimonials and case studies. She shares the “five deposits, one withdrawal” strategy for engaging right-fit clients and nurturing long-term relationships.

Some parts of today’s conversation might feel like a push — and that’s okay.

Other parts — you’ll likely find yourself nodding along, thinking, “Yep, we’ve got that one locked in.”

If you take Sara’s insights to heart and apply them, you’ll be positioned to sell more of what you do — for higher fees — and head into 2025 ready to raise the bar of excellence.

• How to transition from win or lose sales outcomes to a research-oriented approach
• Uncovering client pain points using the Discovery framework
• Crafting content strategies tailored for the top, middle, and bottom of your sales funnel
• Utilizing the “five deposits, one withdrawal” method to foster meaningful right-fit client relationships
• How to avoid common mistakes in agency pitches
• Leveraging consistent, value-rich interactions to build trust over time
• Which email you should never send

Resources:

• Website: http://www.peersalesagency.com/
• Sales Leaders Guide: https://peersalesagency.com/a-sales-leaders-guide-to-creating-b2b-buyer-personas/
• LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahanlon/
• LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/peer-sales/

For this episode of Sell With Authority, we have a special treat for you — we’re taking a big twist.

We’re celebrating a significant milestone — episode 500 of StrategyCast, hosted by the brilliant Lori Jones. Lori is a seasoned marketing executive with a proven track record in strategic communications.

Her expertise spans innovation, disruption, and visionary leadership — making her a standout in the agency space.

For this milestone episode, Lori graciously allowed me the honor of interviewing her — flipping the script and delivering golden nuggets of wisdom galore.

If you and your team are looking to maximize strategies and tactics that can help you close out 2024 strong — or to push past a plateau in your biz dev — don’t miss this opportunity to learn from Lori.

• Why innovation, disruption, and vision are meaningful words for Lori
• Maximizing technology and strategy for right-fit clients
• Differentiating your agency from the sea of competitors
• Emerging trends in marketing and communications that we should be paying attention to
• Ways to adapt to recent innovations in marketing and strategy
• How to streamline the sales process by removing friction
• Examples of successful innovative marketing strategies

Resources:

• Podcast: https://strategycast.com/
• Website: https://avocetcommunications.com/
• LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/avocet-communications/
• LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorisutoriusjones/
• Facebook Business: https://www.facebook.com/AvocetCommunications/
• Twitter Business: https://twitter.com/AvocetComm
• Twitter Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorisutoriusjones/

Additional Resources:

• Website: www.predictiveroi.com
• Visit our newly expanded Resource Library
• Join us in our free How to Fill Your Sales Pipeline Facebook Group

Welcome to the Sell with Authority Podcast – I’m Stephen Woessner, CEO of Predictive ROI. If we happen to be meeting for the first time — Predictive ROI helps agency owners and their teams sell more of what they do…typically for a higher fee.

We do that by helping our clients build an authority position in the niche they’ve decided to serve — and then — monetize that position by creating a steady stream of right-fit prospects flowing into their sales pipeline.

If learning proven strategies, tactics, and best practices to help you sell more of what you do aligns with where you want to take your agency — you’re in the right place.

Today’s episode is going to be a solocast. If you’ve been listening to the show for a while now – you know that about every 4-6 weeks, I record an episode where it’s just you and me — so we can explore a topic with some real depth.

But you may have noticed that within the last couple of months — I’ve recorded more solocasts than my normal cadence. I’ve done that for a couple of reasons.

First — there have been a lot of biz dev situations, questions, etc., that we’ve helped agency owners in our community work through — and some are helpful examples that turn into specific teachable moments to share.

Second — my Predictive team and I have been running at a breakneck pace with new experiments that we’re putting through our Lab and then sharing the results during our Intensives. If you joined us for our July Intensive — you saw the results of an experiment that included 121,000 repetitions in the data set. Wowza.

We’re kicking off a brand new experiment in the Lab tomorrow that will include at least 50,000 repetitions, and we’ll share the data set in full transparency during our next Intensive on November 6th & 7th.

And Praise God — we’ve had the blessing of onboarding some new clients into the fold here at Predictive.

All of that is to say — my schedule for interviewing guests has been challenging. But thankfully — that is changing. In fact — during our quarterly leadership team meeting — my fellow leaders…Erik, Megan, and Hannah — said, “Okay, Stephen — what needs to come off your plate so you can stay in the biz dev lane.”

Staying in my lane will give me the time and space I need to interview the long list of guests that I have been wanting to invite to the podcast…so stay tuned.

But for today — I’m going to start us off by looping back to the new experiment and the 50,000 repetitions that I mentioned a minute ago.

For years — we’ve taught a nurture and lead gen cadence that we’ve called “The 6:1 Ratio.” It was published back in my second book and focused primarily on social media and how many personal or professional posts ought to be made — 6 — to every 1 “ask” post to create the optimal opportunity for conversion.

One of our core values here at Predictive is “Life is not static,” and we’re always testing, adjusting, testing, adjusting, and testing some more.

So on Thursday — we’re launching a brand new, 4-part nurture email campaign and sharing it with all 50,000 agency owners and their teams inside our community. If you’re on our email list — you’ll receive a new email every Thursday for the next four weeks.

We’re doing this for three reasons:

One — 50,000 repetitions for the November Intensive — the full data set.

Two — nurture matters — it removes friction from the sales process.

Three — to break down and illustrate our “4-part Nurture Methodology.”

• How to use the Transformational Triangle to create the foundation of your content strategy (Episode 124, “No Friction Lead Generation,” breaks down the Triangle in specific detail)
• How to write effective emails to give your audience the impression that you have an inexhaustible stream of helpful content (Episode 116, “Email Writing Workshop,” breaks down our email writing framework and process in specific detail)
• How to design and build your own strategic frameworks. Hannah Roth, our mad scientist and strategist here at Predictive, just authored a new ebook coming on strategic framework design. If you’re part of our community — you’ll receive a copy in your Inbox in mid-to late-September.
• And lastly — why creating a series of Transitional Moments that all work in unison will help nurture your prospects and move them up and down the sales funnel without them ever being made to feel like they’re one of your prospects. You can go here for a specific video training on Transitional Moments.

Go here to download our WHO Framework™: Replace your dry sales pipeline with a steady stream of right-fit clients.

Go here to download our WHAT Framework™: Design your irresistible offer and sell it for a premium-priced fee.

Go here to download our HOW Framework™: Put a proven sales process into place and close 80% of your proposals.

Go here to download our How You Help Framework™: Use this framework to make yourself an easy YES! for clients.

• Website: www.predictiveroi.com
• Visit our newly expanded Resource Library
• Join us in our free How to Fill Your Sales Pipeline Facebook Group
• Stephen’s LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Order your free paperback or Kindle copy of our Book: Sell with Authority

For this episode of Sell With Authority we are doubling down on value-based pricing to help you future-proof your agency. Our guest expert is a true authority when it comes to pricing and sales strategy.

Blair Enns, the CEO of Win Without Pitching and the author of the widely acclaimed Win Without Pitching Manifesto joins the podcast. His latest book, Pricing Creativity: A Guide to Profit Beyond the Billable Hour, is a must-read for anyone looking to get a handle on pricing in their business.

I was inspired by one of his articles on quantifying the value of pricing. Specifically, the part about ‘the elephant in the room’ when it comes to pricing really hit home — because we’ve all been there. The uncertainty pricing brings to agency owners is a challenge we just can’t ignore.

So, I knew we had to bring Blair on the show to dive into this topic and help us all navigate the complexities of pricing with confidence. And to make this conversation even richer, also joining is our very own Mad Scientist and Strategist, Hannah Roth. Hannah works tirelessly in the trenches with our clients, helping them fill their sales pipelines with right-fit clients so they can sell more of what they do best.

If you’re an agency owner struggling with pricing, this episode will give you the framework and confidence you need to untether from time-based billing.

• How to shift from selling inputs and outputs to focusing on value creation for right-fit clients
• Why mastering the value conversation can radically transform your agency’s profitability
• Blair’s simple – yet powerful – four-step framework for implementing value-based pricing
• How to view your client portfolio as an investment portfolio to tailor pricing strategies
• The pitfalls to avoid when transitioning away from traditional pricing models

Resources:

• Website: https://www.winwithoutpitching.com/
• LinkedIn Personal: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blairenns/
• LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/win-without-pitching/
• Win Without Pitching Manifesto
• Pricing Creativity: A Guide to Profit Beyond the Billable Hour

Additional Resources:

• Website: www.predictiveroi.com
• Visit our newly expanded Resource Library
• Join us in our free How to Fill Your Sales Pipeline Facebook Group

For this episode of Sell With Authority, we’ve got something really special lined up for you — something we’ve never done before.

We’re calling it a “Fireside Chat.” It’s a more laid-back, informal conversation, but packed with expert insights on a crucial topic for your agency’s success — strategic partnerships.

Also in the category of things we’ve never done before — Hannah Roth, our Mad Scientist and Strategist, and Erik Jensen, my business partner here at Predictive — are co-hosting the episode and interviewing our guest experts Tim Burk and TCB from Conduit Digital. Conduit Digital focuses on being a strategic partner, tailoring their methods to fit each agency’s needs.

Discover how agencies like yours can streamline, upgrade, and scale while reducing the inherent risks that come as your agency grows.

What you will learn in this episode: 

• Why articulating your point of view is critical — it can make a big difference for your agency!
• Creating your ideal client profile or Right-Fit Client avatar and how it can guide your strategies
• Why building a methodology to teach from is key
• Why you should aim for partnership over outsourcing
• The expectations you should have when creating strategic partnerships
• Expert advice for agencies looking to scale and improve performance

Resources:

• Website: https://www.conduitdigital.us/
• LinkedIn Business: https://www.linkedin.com/company/conduitdigital/
• Facebook Business: https://www.facebook.com/ConduitDigitalUS/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/conduitdigital/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/conduitdigital
• Twitter: https://x.com/conduit_digitall
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@conduitdigital

Additional Resources:

• Visit our newly expanded Resource Library
• Join us in our free How to Fill Your Sales Pipeline Facebook Group
• Order your free paperback or Kindle copy of our book: Sell with Authority

Today’s episode of the podcast is a solocast so that you and I could take a strategy from last week’s episode and explore it with more depth. Last week — you may recall — I shared that one of the strategies that we taught during our July Intensive was what we call “No Friction Lead Generation.” When you have built up enough trust, respect, and authority in the minds of your audience or prospects — that when they have an issue inside their business that aligns with your expertise — you get the call.

Or — when you reach out to your audience and let them know you have a new program, service line, event, etc. at the agency — they raise their hands and want to attend or become your next new client.

When that process runs smoothly — we call it No Friction Lead Generation — because, through your content and trust building, you have removed the “friction” from the sales process. And your prospects already know how you can help and they are eager for you to help when they have a need.

No Friction Lead Generation is what we’re going to focus on in this episode so you can create the right content — without it being a heavy lift on your shop — and you can build a steady stream of leads flowing into your sales pipeline because you followed the right recipe.

Sound awesome?

I promise you — if you put the takeaways into practice — you and your team will sell more of what you do — for a higher fee.

• How to create what seems like an inexhaustible supply of helpful content for your audience
• How to identify the three or four business issues and challenges that you and your agency solve with excellence for clients
• How to take the business issues you identified and turn them into the foundation of your content strategy that builds your authority
• Why you should schedule time with someone on your team so they can interview you about each business issue and how your agency solves them
• How to implement the “7-1” cadence so that it delivers a steady stream of right-fit prospects flowing into your sales pipeline

Go here to download our WHO Framework™: Replace your dry sales pipeline with a steady stream of right-fit clients.

Go here to download our WHAT Framework™: Design your irresistible offer and sell it for a premium-priced fee.

Go here to download our HOW Framework™: Put a proven sales process into place and close 80% of your proposals.

Go here to download our How You Help Framework™: Use this framework to make yourself an easy YES! for clients.

• Website: www.predictiveroi.com
• Visit our newly expanded Resource Library
• Join us in our free How to Fill Your Sales Pipeline Facebook Group
• Stephen’s LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Order your free paperback or Kindle copy of our Book: Sell with Authority

Last week (July 30th and 31st) — my Predictive team and I hosted our latest “2-day Intensive.” Every March, July, and November — we get our Predictive clients together for an “Intensive” where we peel back the curtain and share the results of the most recent experiment in the Lab, the actual results, and how to install it into their agencies.

We promised all our clients—and the guests we invited- for the July Intensive—that we’d share the exact recipe for how we 10’xed our email list from 3,900 agencies to over 40,000 agency contacts in about six months.

We walked everyone through the strategies, process, and every step-by-step ingredient in the recipe. After two amazing sessions, we looked back on the experience and thought, “Holy bananas—there were some really awesome takeaways here…not just the content we taught.”

For this episode of Sell With Authority, I will share that debrief with you and all of those bonus takeaways. Hope it’s helpful!

I promise you — if you put the takeaways into practice — you and your team will sell more of what you do — for a higher fee.

• Why, when your agency “Eats its own dog food,” you create trust with your prospects and clients
• Why you should never be scared about teaching the best of what you’ve got in full transparency
• How to build out and document your agency’s methodology in a way that is unique and will set you apart
• Why you should never mix deliverables and outcomes — they are not the same, and clients will pay you much more when you deliver outcomes
• Why, when you include all five ingredients of our recipe in your proposals, you’ll make your agency a much easier YES! for prospects

Go here to download our WHO Framework™: Replace your dry sales pipeline with a steady stream of right-fit clients.

Go here to download our WHAT Framework™: Design your irresistible offer and sell it for a premium-priced fee.

Go here to download our HOW Framework™: Put a proven sales process into place and close 80% of your proposals.

Go here to download our How You Help Framework™: Use this framework to make yourself an easy YES! for clients.

• Website: www.predictiveroi.com
• Visit our newly expanded Resource Library
• Join us in our free How to Fill Your Sales Pipeline Facebook Group
• Stephen’s LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Order your free paperback or Kindle copy of our Book: Sell with Authority

I am thrilled about this episode of Sell With Authority because it is super fun — and ridiculously helpful!

Hannah Roth, our mad scientist and strategist at Predictive, is back for another episode to debunk the myth that niching down is just about picking an industry.

Hannah has been diving into the latest Agency Edge research report. We walk through her observations and distillations — at a high level.

One standout point in the research is the importance of having a well-defined niche.

People are often scared to niche down because it feels like saying “NO” to revenue.

But — niching down allows you to say no to clients that cost you time, money, and sanity, and say yes to clients that are more profitable, better to work with, and actually appreciate the work your agency is doing.

We also discuss how to build a reputable brand, why consistent, helpful content is your golden ticket — and the importance of a solid referral system.

Evolving through multiple lenses — from industry and audience to methodology — can make your agency stand out and make it so much easier for clients to say yes.

Double down and future-proof your business by mastering your niche with the strategic lenses Hannah shares. You and your team will remove friction from the sales process — and sell more of what you do.

What you will learn in this episode: 

• How to leverage six different lenses for niching down
• Why niching down does not just mean picking an industry
• Why building a rock-solid reputation within your niche is crucial
• Steps to repurpose existing content into multiple formats
• Key insights from the Agency Edge research report

Resources:

• Predictive ROI Free Resource Library: https://predictiveroi.com/resources/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-roth-387a6b223/
• Agency Edge Research Series: https://agencymanagementinstitute.com/agency-tools/agency-edge-research-series/

This episode is going to be one of those episodes where you ask yourself… “What in the world was that!?! – because that was ridiculously fun and super helpful!”

My guest expert today is Erik Jensen. In case you’re meeting Erik for the first time — he’s my business partner here at Predictive ROI, and we’ve worked alongside each other for well over a decade.

Erik has a depth of expertise in helping agency owners go deep into their niche to build their authority position — and then — monetize that position in the form of a steady stream of right-fit clients flowing into their sales pipelines so they can sell more of what they do.

If you’re a Predictive client — or if you’ve been a member of our community for a while now — you may also know that one of Erik’s superpowers is system design — and in particular — CRMs — so think all things email marketing, content, process automation, workflows, and e-commerce.

When Erik and I were thinking about him coming back to the podcast for another conversation — we explored the idea of focusing our time together around CRMs — and, in particular — how putting the right strategy and tech into practice inside your shop could help you streamline biz dev and ops — and in the process — help you sell more of what you do.

If you’ve ever considered or questioned how the right CRM — combined with the right automation — might help you and your team grow your audience, nurture leads, and increase sales — while streamlining processes and workflows — then this conversation with Erik is for you.

I promise you — if you take and apply the insights, wisdom, and expertise Erik shares during this episode — you and your team will find new ways to streamline biz dev and ops inside your shop so that you have the capacity to sell more of what you do.

• What is the difference between CRMs and email marketing automation platforms?
• What are the top 3 questions Erik is asked when it comes to CRMs or email/marketing automation?
• How could an agency owner and their team tell if or when they should consider moving from a MailChimp or Constant Contact to a CRM like Keap, Hubspot, GoHighLevel?
• When Erik was evaluating all of the CRMs when choosing one for Predictive — what features and criteria were important to consider?
• Why is Erik a fan of Keap’s automation builder?
• If you’re considering onboarding a CRM — what would Erik recommend as your initial three action steps to start down that path?

• Get the WHO Framework™: Replace your dry sales pipeline with a steady stream of right-fit clients.
• Get the WHAT Framework™: Design your irresistible offer and sell it for a premium-priced fee.
• Get the HOW Framework™: Put a proven sales process into place and close 80% of your proposals.
• Get the How You Help Framework™: Use this framework to make yourself an easy YES! for clients.

• Website: www.predictiveroi.com
• Visit our newly expanded Resource Library
• Join us in our free How to Fill Your Sales Pipeline Facebook Group
• Stephen’s LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/stephenwoessner/
• Order your free paperback or Kindle copy of our Book: Sell with Authority